Current Events in Asia-Pacific

From Defence Talk China Warns U.S. Not to Sell Fighters To Taiwan AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE Mon, 24 Jul 2006, 00:33 Beijing has warned Washington not to proceed with a reported deal to sell fighterss to Taiwan, indicating it would impact on regional security and harm Sino-U.S. relations, state media said on July 21. ”The Chinese side has taken note of the report and lodged serious representations to the United States,” China’s foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua news agency. The China Times reported on July 17 that a Taiwanese delegation had proposed the procurement of 66 advanced fighter planes during an annua…

Indian Army Successfully Tests BrahMos Block-III Deep Penetration Variant (The Diplomat, Flashpoints blog)

Interesting data on Z-18F and Liaoning air wing composition: http://www.navyrecognition.com/index.php/news/defence-news/2016/december-2016-navy-naval-forces-defense-industry-technology-maritime-security-global-news/4706-plan-z-18f-helicopter-in-asw-configuration-with-two-torpedoes-spotted-for-the-first-time-in-china.html

From http://www.defensenews.com Singapore Navy To Escort Passing Merchant Ships By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, SINGAPORE Armed escorts from the Singapore Navy will guard selected merchant ships and cruise liners plying the city-state’s busy waters as part of efforts to prevent terrorism, the defense ministry said Feb. 28. The Accompanying Sea Security Teams scheme will be launched sometime in March, a ministry spokesperson said. The Straits Times newspaper reported Feb. 28 that up to eight navy personnel capable of running a commercial vessel in an emergency will board selected ships that might be threatened because of their cargo. The team will includ…

U.S. Moves to Boost Japan’s Missile Shield By REUTERS, WASHINGTON defensenews The Pentagon notified Congress June 29 of a proposed sale to Tokyo of nine more sea-based missiles and related gear valued at up to $387 million to strengthen Japan’s fledgling ballistic missile shield. The nine SM-3 Block IA Standard missiles, built by Raytheon Co., are the second batch requested by Tokyo in recent months. They would be used on Japanese ships equipped with high-technology AEGIS combat systems built by Lockheed Martin Corp. One such Aegis weapon system would be upgraded for ballistic-missile defense under the new proposed sale, the Defense Department said. …

How the U.S. could lose a war with China over Taiwan World Tribune Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Peter Pace inspected the honor guard during a welcome ceremony at the Defense Ministry in Beijing in late March. Pace was in Beijing to hold talks with China 's top military leaders. (AFP/Elizabeth Dalziel) The Rand Corp., a leading consultant to the Pentagon and the intelligence community, has assessed that China could defeat the United States in a war over Taiwan. Rand said Beijing has developed a strategy meant to deny the U.S. military access to the Straits of Taiwan. In a report that contrasted sharply with the optimism of several U.S. mil…

From Flight International DATE: 25/02/08 SOURCE: Flight International Boeing expects to seal Seoul deal for F-15Ks By Craig Hoyle South Korea should conclude a deal on a follow-on batch of 20 Boeing F-15K multirole fighters within the next month, says F-15 programme director Steve Winkler. The manufacturer also believes other potential fresh orders from existing Eagle users Japan, Saudi Arabia and Singapore could extend production of the type beyond 2012. Boeing has now delivered 32 F-15Ks from South Korea's 40-strong order worth $4.2 billion, with the rest to follow by late this year. Although Seoul held an original requirement for 120 F-X fighters, Win…

A report on the Indian Air Force's MMRCA fighter competition from the Carnegie Endowment dogfight! (PDF format)

From DefenseNews U.S. Should Butt out of China’s Bilateral Relations By AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, BEIJING On June 30, China blasted interference by the United States in its relations with other countries and urged the European Union and Israel to ignore Washington’s concerns over arms sales. ”We believe that the United States should not point fingers, make irresponsible remarks and place obstacles in the way. We are firmly against it,” foreign ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said. ”The U.S. should discard its Cold War mentality and stop obstructing normal cooperation between China and other countries ... we ask relevant parties and sides to adhere to the prin…

China Daily

Satellite Imagery: China Staging Mock Invasion of Taiwan? (The Diplomat)

How far can China’s long-range missiles reach in the South China Sea? (DefenseNews)

How Powerful Is China’s Military? The Pentagon’s New China Report Offers Answers (1945) Link to the CMPR: Military and Security Developments Involving the PRC 2021 (DOD, pdf) The Pentagon’s 2021 China Military Power Report: My Summary (Andrew Erickson)

From RIA Novosti Russian 'killer of aircraft carriers' starts drills in Pacific 15:45 | 26/ 05/ 2008 VLADIVOSTOK, May 26 (RIA Novosti) - The Varyag, a Russian Slava-class missile cruiser dubbed 'the killer of aircraft carriers,' has started a series of live-firing exercises in the Pacific for the first time since a recent overhaul, a fleet spokesman said Monday. Varyag, the flagship of the Russian Pacific Fleet, was commissioned in Russia's Pacific Fleet in 1989 and re-entered service in early 2008 following a major refit that lasted almost a year. "The Varyag's crew is scheduled to conduct a series of live firing drills against ground, surface, and air t…

From Jane's Chinese naval J-11s spotted in the open By Ted Parsons 10 May 2010 In early May Chinese military websites featured images outside the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation factory indicating that new single- and twin-seat J-11 fighters are probably being produced for the People's Liberation Army Navy Air Force (PLANAF). The images showed J-11s in a very light grey livery consistent with the PLANAF's Sukhoi Su-30MKK2 fighters, 24 (one regiment) of which were delivered in 2004. The single-seat fighters reportedly have the designation J-11BH, a new variant of the J-11B, which in turn is Shenyang's significantly modified version of Sukhoi's Su-27SK that Shen…

Is North Korea Building a New Submarine? (38 North)

Last night during the Zoom meeting there was talk about the PLAN super carrier and that they were going to use the same cats that we're using. Maybe not....to this old shipfitters eyes it looks like a standard Kuznetov design with a ski ramp and no angle...which means they can't launch and recover at the same time....oops.... Byron

From Flight Global [excerpt]

From DefenseNews [excerpt]

North Korea’s Musudan Missile: A Performance Assessment (38 North)